Financial Transactions Reporting Act - Bahamas

1 Financial Transactions Reporting [ 1 LRO 1/2010 STATUTE LAW OF THE Bahamas Financial Transactions Reporting CHAPTER 368 Financial Transactions Reporting LIST OF AUTHORISED PAGES 1 43 LRO 1/2010 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS PART I PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS SECTION 1. Short title. 2. Interpretation. 3. Definition of Financial institution . 4. Amounts not in Bahamian currency. 5. Act to bind the Crown. PART II OBLIGATIONS ON Financial INSTITUTIONS TO VERIFY IDENTITY 6. Financial institutions to verify identity of facility holders. 7. Financial institutions to verify identity of persons conducting certain occasional Transactions .]

2 8. Verification where persons acting on behalf of others in respect of occasional Transactions . 9. Verification where facility holders acting on behalf of others. 10. Application of sections 8 and 9 in relation to beneficiaries under a trust. 10A Verification where offence under Proceeds of Crime Act suspected. 11. Procedures for verifying identity. 12. Offences. 13. Defence. PART III OBLIGATION TO REPORT SUSPICIOUS Transactions 14. Financial institutions to report suspicious Transactions . 15. Auditors to report suspicious Transactions . 16. Protection of persons Reporting suspicious Transactions .

3 17. Legal professional privilege. 18. Suspicious transaction reports not to be disclosed. 19. Protection of identity of persons making suspicious transaction reports. 20. Offences. 21. Defence. 22. Application of information. 2] Financial Transactions Reporting STATUTE LAW OF THE Bahamas LRO 1/2010 PART IV RETENTION OF RECORDS 23. Obligation to keep transaction records. 24. Obligation to keep verification records. 25. Obligation to keep prescribed records. 26. How records to be kept. 27. When records need not be kept. 28. Destruction of records. 29. Other laws not affected. 30. Offences.

4 PART V SEARCH WARRANTS 31. Search warrants. 32. Form and content of search warrant. 33. Powers conferred by warrant. 34. Person executing warrant to produce evidence of authority. 35. Notice of execution of warrant. 36. Custody of property seized. 37. Procedure where certain documents seized. 38. Disposal of things seized. PART VI COMPLIANCE COMMISSION 39. Establishment of Commission. 40. Membership of Commission. 41. Term of appointment. 42. Exclusion from membership. 43. Functions of the Commission. 44. Production of records. 45. Confidentiality. 46. Meaning of Financial institution.

5 47. Codes of practice. PART VII MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 48. Liability of employers and principals. 49. Directors and officers of bodies corporate. 50. Non-compliance not excused by contractual obligations. 51. Regulations. FIRST SCHEDULE. SECOND SCHEDULE Details to be Included in Suspicious Transaction Report. Financial Transactions Reporting [ 3 LRO 1/2010 STATUTE LAW OF THE Bahamas CHAPTER 368 Financial Transactions Reporting An Act to impose certain obligations on Financial institutions in relation to the conduct of Financial Transactions ; and for connected purposes.]

6 [Commencement 29th December, 2000 (except sections 12, 20 and 30: 29th June, 2001)] PART I PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS 1. This Act may be cited as the Financial Transactions Reporting Act. 2. (1) In this Act accountant means a person registered and licensed under the Public Accountants Act; cash means any coin or paper money that is designated as legal tender in the country of issue and includes bearer bonds, travellers cheques, postal orders and money orders; Commission means the Compliance Commission established under section 39; Comptroller has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Customs Management Act.

7 Counsel and attorney means a counsel and attorney admitted to practice under the Legal Profession Act; document has the same meaning as in section 2 of the Evidence Act; facility subject to any regulations made under this Act (a) means any account or arrangement (i) that is provided by a Financial institution to a facility holder; and (ii) by, through or with which a facility holder may conduct two or more Transactions whether or not they are so used; and 40 of 2000 17 of 2001 31 of 2002 1 of 2003 23 of 2003 39/2004 20 of 2007 36 of 2008 Short title.

8 Interpretation. Ch. 364. 17 of 2001, s. 2. Ch. 293. Ch. 64. Ch. 65. 17 of 2001, s. 2. 4] Financial Transactions Reporting STATUTE LAW OF THE Bahamas LRO 1/2010 (b) without limiting the generality of the fore-going, includes (i) a life assurance policy; (ii) membership of a superannuation scheme; (iii) the provision, by a Financial institution, of facilities for safe custody, including (without limitation) a safety deposit box; facility holder , in relation to a facility (a) means the person in whose name the facility is established.

9 (b) without limiting the generality of the fore-going, includes (i) any person to whom the facility is assigned; and (ii) any person who is authorised to con-duct Transactions through the facility; (c) in relation to a facility that is a life assurance policy, means any person who for the time being is the legal holder of that policy; Financial Intelligence Unit means the Financial Intelligence Unit established under section 3 of the Financial Intelligence Unit Act; Financial institution has the meaning given to it by section 3; foreign Financial institution means a Financial institution which, in a country specified in the First Schedule, exercises functions equivalent to the corresponding Financial institution in The Bahamas in accordance with section 3 and that is subject to equivalent or higher anti-money laundering and anti-terrorism financing standards of regulation as provided for by Bahamian law.

10 Funds means cash, securities, cheques, drafts, bank deposits, payment orders and other negotiable instruments which are readily convertible into cash; industry organisation means any organisation the purpose of which, or one of the purposes of Ch. 367. 17 of 2001, s. 2. 36 of 2008, s. 2. First Schedule. Financial Transactions Reporting [ 5 LRO 1/2010 STATUTE LAW OF THE Bahamas which, is to represent the interests of any class or classes of Financial institution; Inspector means the Inspector of Banks and Trust Companies established under section 9 of the Banks and Trust Companies Regulation Act; life assurance policy means a policy within the meaning of section 2 of the Insurance Act; Minister means the Minister responsible for the administration of this Act.]